HomeMy WebLinkAboutCOM 0746.065 2000-2002
Jennifer Rush, American Lung Association of Hawaii
TESTIMONY I SUPPORT OF WAIF CO MM BILL 260
Public Hearin, November 26, 200
On behalf of myself and the American Dung Association of Hawaii, I support Bill 260, An
Ordinance Amending Chapter 14 (General Welfare) of the Hawaii County Corm 1983
(1995) E'difion, as Amended, Relating to Smoking in Certain Places in the County of Hawaii.
In 1993, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency issued a risk assessment,
"Respiratory Health Effects of Passive Smoking: Lung Cancer and Other Disorders", that
classified environmental tobacco smoke as a Croup A carcinogen known to cause cancer in
humans. The 1997 California Environmental Protection Agency report, "Health Effects of
Exposure to Environmental Tobacco Smoke," confirmed the U.S. EPA's finding that
environmental tobacco smoke is a health risk for children and adults.
As a representative of the American Lung Association of Hawaii, I can tell you that the
most comprehensive and effective Clean Indoor Air laws have been enacted at the local
level. Over 300 communities across the country have enacted smoke-free ordinances,
including 137 communities that have banned smoking in all workplaces including
restaurants.
As an asthmatic, I can tell you that passing Bill 260 will give myself and others with
chronic obstructive pulmonary diseases a freedom others take for granted; the freedom to
work, shop and dine without having to first determine if smoking is allowed. Frequenting
establishments where smoking is allowed is simply not an option for me. Remove indoor
smoking and I am free to patronize more local establishments.
The attached document from the CDC provides statistics on the decrease of cigarette
smoking among adults. Allowing smoking in public places is serving a smaller and smaller
portion of the population day by day.
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Thank you for your time and attention. O)MM.
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File No.
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MMWR Highlights
Cigarette € kin Among Adults-United States, 2000
Embargoed until 1 p.m., July 25, 2002
July 25, 2002
Contact: CDC Office on Smoking and Health
(770) 488-5493
In 2000, approximately 23.3 percent of adults were current smokers; this was a decline
from 25 percent in 1993.
• Preliminary data for 2001 indicate a continuing decline in current smoking among adults
to 22.8 percent.
• During 1993-2000, substantial reductions in current smoking prevalence were reported
for all age groups, except those aged 18-24 years.
• According to the 2000 National Health Interview Survey, 70 percent of adult smokers in
the United States wantd to quit smoking.
• In 2000, 41 percent of adult smokers in the U.S. stopped smoking for at least one day
because they were trying to quit.
• The percentage of ever smokers who had quit was highest for whites at 51 percent and
lowest for non-Hispanic blacks at 37.3 percent.
• The percentage of those who had ever smoked and who had quit ranged from 33.6 percent
for those with a GED to 74.4 percent for those with a graduate degree.
• Nearly half the ever smokers above the poverty line had quit. Barely a third of ever
smokers below the poverty line had met with similar success in quitting.
• Only 4.7 percent of those who had quit smoking in the past year were able to maintain
abstinence from smoking for 3-12 months.
For more information, visit CDC's Office on Smoking and Health Web site at
ww .y.cdc. goy/tobacco
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